Period Charm

 Suffolk hotelier Craig Jarvis lets us into the world of his much loved hotels and local food.

Why do you live and work where you do?
The charming and traditional village of Beyton is home, not far from my hotel Ravenwood Hall in Rougham, just outside Bury St. Edmunds. My house is quite old with lots of character, just like the hotels; I enjoy the historic elements of antique properties, that’s why I fell in love with Ravenwood Hall when I first saw it some 24 years ago, then called the Rookery – I had always seen the sign at the bottom of the drive but never ventured in to have a look. Noticing the ‘For Sale’ sign, curiosity got the better of me and I just had to take a look. The moment I saw the 16th century hall with its oak beams and original artwork on the wall, it so much represented a real piece of old England that I just had to have it.

Suffolk is a lovely county; I feel it has a nice cultural balance, being rural yet sophisticated, with a great mix of people. I also have a hotel in beautiful Long Melford called the Black Lion so I also spend a lot of time there, with the magnificent church, the Tudor mansion Kentwell Hall and the unique High Street with all the interesting little boutiques and my favourite antique shops.   

What makes your locality so different?
With Ravenwood Hall, it is in such a tucked away piece of England, the country house hotel and restaurant in the hidden wooded grounds. It provides a little haven for visitors to enjoy away from the hustle and bustle of work and other commitments in today’s often hectic world. Whilst the Black Lion is a Georgian townhouse, more of a boutique hotel and restaurant with its Victorian walled garden.

Tell us about your local area from a food and drink perspective…
We are so lucky around Suffolk and Norfolk – there is everything you need in foodie terms. As Ravenwood Hall is literally next door to Rougham Estate where I shoot, there is always fresh game on the menu and on my own plates at home for that matter, everything from pigeon and goose to hare and venison.

There is also an abundance of choice for fresh fish, you can’t beat the Norfolk/Suffolk coast areas for things like bass, sole and cod as well as terrific shellfish, Norfolk brown shrimps, cockles from Heacham where I go with the children, and of course Cromer crabs, also not forgetting the famous Colchester Oysters. I love Norfolk Samphire too.

We have such fantastic ingredients close to home such as Rushford asparagus and good old Newmarket sausages from Musks. The large selection of local cheeses is a joy. With regard to drink we have apple juice from Maynards in Bradfield St Clare, Aspall’s cider, wines from Wyken vineyard not far from Bury and lovely Adnams Ales on draught at the bar and also in our fish batter.

Good quality tasty meat is also easy to find, we use Clarkes in Long Melford for the restaurants, their sticky Suffolk bacon is excellent as is their 28 day aged rib of beef. We also source traditional black hams from Emmetts near Saxmundham. In our own smokeries at the hotels, we smoke our own salmon and other fish as well as duck and beef.

Where do you like visiting to eat and drink?
I enjoy dining in many different places locally, all sorts for a variety of occasions, decent pubs to high class restaurants; such as the Leaping Hare at Wyken Vineyard and their seasonal, rustic and tasteful food; the Heacham Fish & Chip shop near Hunstanton in north-west Norfolk; the Five Bells pub at Felsham, they serve great beer and good honest food, where what you see is what you get; the Hoste Arms in Burnham Market is a perennial favourite, it has a lively atmosphere and is great for people watching; the Bildeston Crown is imaginative and skilled with the dishes they produce.

My all time favourite has to be the Lobster Shack in Brancaster Staithe where you can buy mugs of tea, shellfish baguettes and fantastic whole lobster to take away. And every chap needs a proper drinking pub, mine is the Bear at Beyton. For a proper cup of Earl Grey, there is a nice tea shop in Bury called The Bay Tree down St. John’s Street but my daughter favours Harriet’s in Bury town centre for hot chocolate with marshmallows.


Craig’s latest addition to his pair of classic Suffolk hotels is as unexpected as the owner himself. Dry beached high on the dunes at Heacham is the Wild Duck, a truly unique venue of a 128 year old houseboat overlooking the beautiful sands and seaswell of this beautiful part of the Wash coast in North Norfolk.

But the distinctly landlocked surroundings of Craig’s two main properties could also not be more diverse, on the one hand proper country house and on the other boutique townhouse. Ravenwood Hall, a timbered creation of Elizabethan origins with part Edwardian façade, nestles in the woods to the east of Bury St Edmunds, just oft the A14 but so secluded amongst its shady sylvan glade, its verdant lawns surrounded by towering trees, one would never realise. The latter, the Black Lion could not be more focal, in its lush village green location at the head of Long Melford High Street, reputedly superlative in its long length and number of antique shops. What unifies the two is their shared pride in proper hotelkeeping, this is not faded chintz and haughty stuffiness, rather the intent to provide comfort, style and decadence in keeping with the buildings and giving guests the feeling that they have been welcomed into a private family house albeit with the best of modern comforts in a hotel setting.

Craig himself has worked with food all his life, starting out in restaurants, he became a young entrepreneur, opening Ravenwood back in 1986 and buying the Black Lion in 1999. This dynamism and risk-taking continues in his private life, now nearly 50 he has lost little of that nerve which has seen him doing the extreme bobsleigh of the Cresta Run in the Nineties, competing over the Grand National fences in the amateur horserace the Foxhunters’ Chase at Aintree. He is still a regular point-to-point rider and proficient polo player as well as crewing sailing boats, competing at Cowes every year and if that is not enough, still risks the waves kite-surfing. But his urbane side is tempered during the game season, very much the country gentleman at his shooting peg. Like his guests, he enjoys the finer things in life, albeit not so genteel in his case.

Ravenwood Hall Hotel, Rougham, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
T: 01359 270345  W:  ravenwoodhall.co.uk

The Wild Duck, South Beach, Heacham, Norfolk 
W: thewildduck.net

Black Lion Hotel, The Green, Long Melford, Suffolk
T: 01787 312356   W: blacklionhotel.net